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Fire Retardants and their Potential Impact on Fire Fighter Health

 

AGENDA and PRESENTATIONS^[1]

September 30, 2009, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20899

8:30 Registration 

8:50 Welcome, Dr. William Grosshandler, Deputy Director, BFRL, NIST 

9:00 Context for meeting

Chair: Richard M. Duffy, Assistant to the General President, Occupational Health, Safety and Medicine, International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF)

• The role of NIOSH in protecting the on-the-job health of fire fighters, Leslie Boord, National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory, NIOSH
• The State of Environmental Regulations,  Mr. Daniel Axelrad, Nat'l Center for Environmental Economics, Environmental Protection Agency
• Q and A 

 

10:00 What are fire retardants and why do we use them?

Chair: Dr. Jeffrey Gilman, Leader, Materials Flammability Group, Fire Research Division, NIST

• The Role of Flame Retardants in Reducing the Rate of Fire Spread, Dr. Jeffrey Gilman, NIST
• Flame Retardants Past and Future, Dr. Alex Morgan, Dayton Research Institute 

10:45 Break 

 

11:00 previous session continued

• Additives used in Flame Retardant Polymer Formulations: Current Practice & Trends, Mr. Tim Reilly, Clariant P&A
• Flame Retardants - Fire Safety & Regulatory Status, Ms. Susan D. Landry , Albemarle
• Panel Discussion 

 

12:05 What happens to fire retardants and their products in the environment?

Chair:  Leslie Boord, National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory, NIOSH

• Characterizing the Products Formed in Furniture Fires, Dr. Thomas Fabian, Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., Northbrook IL 

12:30 Lunch 

 

1:15 previous session continued

• Life Cycle Analysis of Fire Retardants, Dr. Margaret Simonson McNamee, Research Manager, SP Technical Research Institute, Sweden
• The Fate of PBDEs in the Environment, Prof. Tom Webster, Boston University School of Public Health
• The Fire Retardant Dilemma: Fire Safety, Human Health and Environmental Protection, Dr. Arlene Blum, Green Science Policy Institute  
• Panel Discussion 

2:45 Break 

 

3:00 Are there health risks to fire fighters created by fire retardants?

Chair: Dr. Margaret Simonson McNamee, Research Manager, SP Technical Research Institute, Sweden

• Toxicity Program for Evaluation of Halogenated and Alternative FRs, Dr. George Rusch, Director, Toxicology and Risk Assessment, Honeywell
• Toxic Hazards to Fire Fighters, Including Effects of Fire Retardants, During Fires and Post-Fire Investigation Activities, Prof. David Purser, Hartford Environmental Research, UK
• Understanding to What Fire Fighters are Exposed, When They are Exposed, and Routes of Exposure, Dr. Peter Orris, Occupational Health Service Institute, Univ. of Illinois Chicago
• Controlling Fire Fighter Exposures to Fire Retardants, Ms. Dawn Bolstad-Johnson, Industrial Hygienist, Phoenix Fire Department
• Panel Discussion  

 

5:00 Where are our gaps in knowledge?

Open Session, Chaired by William Grosshandler, NIST 

5:30 Adjourn

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^[1] An audio CD of the presentations is available by email request from shanille.nelson@nist.gov. Include your mailing address.